TMNT 2003: A Digital Heart
by Clovee93
Summary: When Mikey overhears his brothers talk about his lack of help to them and blaming him for what happened to Master Splinter during their travel back home from the future, he decides to prove his worth by secretly going into Cyberspace alone to gather more of Master Splinter's data bits, only to face severe consequences when he encounters the Cyber Shredder again in the process.
1. Chapter 1-Letting them down

TMNT 2003: A Digital Heart

_When Mikey overhears his brothers talk about his lack of help to them and blaming him for what happened to Master Splinter during their travel back home from the future, he decides to prove his worth by secretly going into Cyberspace alone to gather more of Master Splinter's data bits, only to face severe consequences when he encounters the Cyber Shredder again in the process._

_Can his brothers save him as well as make things right with him before it is too late? I do not own TMNT 2003._

/

Chapter 1-Letting them down

The New York streets on a Friday night were lively with bright lights shining across the streets in a rainbow of colours as well as people heading to or from night clubs and bars to celebrate the start of another weekend. Below them in the sewers, however, there was a high chance that there would be no positive vibes for what would be happening just around the corner.

In one of the sewer tunnels, the orange-masked turtle Michelangelo a.k.a. Mikey was walking his way back home to the lair whilst wearing his helmet and carrying his skateboard which was wrapped around in his arm.

"Man, what a fun day of skateboarding in the sewers…I just wish that my brothers had joined me, it would have given them a break from what they're doing right now…" Mikey said to himself.

It had been over a month since he and his brothers returned to their time from the future and Master Splinter was lost and scattered as data bits in Cyberspace, and he and his brothers worked hard to try and gather them all every day.

Despite their efforts, however, there was still a long way to go before they could gather all of the data bits and it was tiring them out both physically and spiritually, so Mikey decided to take the afternoon off by spending it on skateboarding to recharge and clear his head. He asked his brothers to join him earlier but they declined since they wanted to either do something else or, in Donnie's case, carry on looking for Master Splinter's data bits so Mikey went alone.

Soon, Mikey reached the entrance to the lair and he was about to put his skateboard and helmet down when he heard the sound of chattering voices, which he recognised as his brothers' voices.

"Huh? I wonder what all the chattering's about?" Mikey wondered before he got closer to the doorway that led towards the computer room and listened quietly.

"Why would Mikey go skateboarding at a time like this!? Does he not care about father at all!?" Donnie said angrily.

"Donnie, I know you're frustrated right now but Mikey had a point earlier; we've been gathering Master Splinter's data bits non-stop for the past month without a single break. If we carry on like this, we'll end up collapsing with exhaustion and will no longer be able to save him for a while," Leo answered his purple-banded brother in a firm but caring tone.

"Since when is Mikey ever right, Fearless? Fa all I know; I think dat he left so dat he doesn't have ta lift a finger ta help us. It just shows how useless and selfish he really is ta us in dis family and team!" Raph blurted out in frustration to defend Donnie.

When Mikey overheard what Raph said, he gasped and his eyes widened as his heart began to beat slightly faster before he continued to listen to his brothers' discussion.

"That's not true, Raph! Mikey is-" Leo tried to defend Mikey but Raph cut him off.

"Don't even think about defending dat knucklehead, Leo! You know that what we're sayin' is true cos you're thinking da same thing as us! After all, it's thanks ta him dat Master Splinter is scattered in tiny pieces inside Cyberspace in da first place!"

"Raph is right, Leo; he almost got us all killed back in that dimension with the three Shredders in and he hardly helped us when we were upgrading the lair's computer system. I also can't stand it when he's not taking the Cyberspace missions seriously and was instead thinking that they're all a game to him!" Donnie said firmly in agreement.

Leo was about to say something in Mikey's defence again before he stopped and thought about what his brothers said since he knew deep down that he agreed with them. "I…you're right, guys; I have seen what he's been doing this past month and it makes me angry at times when he doesn't take things seriously despite his best efforts in trying to help us stay positive…Sometimes I just wish that he was a bit more mature than he is right now…"

Mikey was shocked when he heard what Leo had just said when he thought that his oldest brother would defend him again, but that was no longer the case, and it was about to go from bad to worse when he heard what Donnie said next.

"Yeah, well...he's no best friend of mine anymore since he only cares about himself and his childish antics instead of being a brother and helper to me whenever I need him most…like now with bringing back Master Splinter!"

"I hear ya, Donnie; there are times where I just want things ta go smoothly without havin' Mikey McScrew-Up with us on da team and messin' things up fa us...I wish dat he wasn't my brother anymore!" Raph said with a nod before he slammed a fist on the desk in anger when he said the last part.

"Raph, you don't really mean that, do you!? I agree on how you're feeling but that's going a bit too far now!" Leo said in a surprised and shocked tone.

"Ya wanna bet, Fearless?" Raph mocked Leo threateningly with a glare, causing him to back down slightly and look away in frustration with a sigh.

"Look, I believe that from now on and for the good of the team, we will be doing these missions without Mikey, whether he or any of us like it or not…at least until he can learn to be a proper ninja and brother!" Donnie said in a demanding manner towards Leo since he would be one to make a final decision on that proposal.

"I vote ta agree with Donnie on dis, bro…it's fa da best fa all of us, and it will get da job done faster," Raph said to Leo in a slightly calmer manner even though he still had an annoyed look on his face.

Leo sighed and pinched the top of his nose whilst he thought about this; he was unsure if he would be able to agree with Donnie's proposal since he wouldn't know for sure if Mikey would accept their decision with open arms and might feel heartbroken once told, but Leo knew in his heart that the decision was for the best for both them and Master Splinter.

"Alright...I'll talk to Mikey and tell him what we've agreed on first thing tomorrow since he'll be coming home tired from his skateboarding tonight..." He said after a moment of thinking hard about their decision before he watched his brothers nod with small and grateful smiles on their faces.

Mikey couldn't believe it, he wanted to wake up from this nightmare but he couldn't because what he overheard was real and those words came out of his own older brothers' mouths. He never knew that his own brothers felt this way about him and how much he had let them all down until now because he thought that what he was doing as himself was helping his family, but clearly it wasn't after hearing his brothers' discussion. What made it worse was that Donnie stated that he no longer wanted him to be his best friend and Raph didn't want him to be his brother anymore, and Leo just stood there and agreed with their feelings, which made his heart start to break and tears to start falling from his eyes.

For the past 2 minutes, Mikey just stood in the same spot with wobbly legs that felt like they were about to give way any minute as he leaned behind the wall next to the lair's entrance, with tears still falling down his cheeks as he tried to keep it together and not make any noise that would alert his brothers and have them find out that he had been eavesdropping on their discussion.

He then slowly started to calm himself down and wiped the tears from his eyes and cheeks before he took a few deep breaths and quietly entered the lair and headed towards the TV area without his brothers noticing so that he could pick up his new comic book, which he got yesterday but hadn't read it yet due to a Cyberspace mission, from the coffee table and began to head for his room. It was then that Leo had spotted Mikey as he was about to leave, causing Raph and Donnie to look in his direction and spot him too.

"Mikey?" Leo shouted out towards him to get his attention, which had worked, and Mikey stopped suddenly and looked towards him and his other brothers with a surprised look.

"O-Oh…Hey, bros…" Mikey replied back shyly and quietly after he was startled from being spotted.

"What's the matter, bro? It's not like you to just come back in without letting us know…" Leo then said in concern when he never knew that Mikey had just returned home until he spotted him picking up a comic book from the coffee table at the TV area.

"Err…S-Sorry, Leo…I just saw you all talking about something when I came in so I-I thought that I should come in quietly so that I wouldn't disturb you…but don't worry; I was just about to leave you alone in peace now, anyway..." Mikey replied nervously before he continued walking from the TV area with his comic in hand, but he then stopped when Raph spoke up with a confused look on his face.

"Ya don't look happy, Mike…Did somethin' happen ta make ya not want ta play video games right now after comin' back from your skateboarding trip?"

"Wha…? No no, it's not like that, Raph. I-I'm just tired from skateboarding and have decided to go to bed early, that's all...!" Mikey answered instantly despite the slight shakiness in his voice.

"Oh…Well, aren't ya gonna eat with us first? Cos ya haven't eaten anythin' since lunch and it's almost dinner time…" Raph then asked.

"Yeah, and Leo already ordered a pizza for us 15 minutes ago…" Donnie said in a now calmer tone when he noticed that Mikey was not exactly acting like his normal self right now.

"Really? W-Well, I'm not feeling too hungry right now, bros…can you save me a slice or two for later, please? I'll be in my room if you need me, even if it's just...a small task…G'night, bros…" Mikey said as he shook his head with a sad but tired smile, and then he resumed his walk towards his room as small tears began to develop in his eyes.

Leo, Raph and Donnie looked at each other before they watched on as Mikey headed towards his room and then heard his room door close shut.

"What da Shell was dat all about? Dat ain't like da Mikey I know!" Raph said in frustration and annoyance after he saw the way Mikey declined his favourite food so quickly.

"Yeah, normally he would run towards the TV area in excitement and play video games non-stop until late at night…Why would he just come in quietly and go to pick up a comic book before going to his room, instead?" Donnie said in thought as he placed a finger under his chin.

When Leo thought about Donnie's question, he suddenly remembered the way Mikey spoke his last sentence to them and that's when he gasped and his eyes widened as he thought about something that came into his mind.

"Guys, I think Mikey heard everything we said about him earlier…" He said sadly after he looked at his brothers with a worried look, causing Raph and Donnie to look at him in shock before they spoke in disbelief.

"What!?" "Are you serious!?"

"Yes, I don't think it's a coincidence that Mikey would just enter the lair shortly after our discussion without a sound and then head straight to his room with no interest in having dinner with us…I believe that Mikey came back sooner than he led us to believe and was about to enter the lair when he overheard us talking about him…" Leo said in a serious tone after he shook his head.

After hearing Leo's theory, Raph and Donnie took a moment to let what Leo just said sink in before they both finally allowed the pieces of the puzzle to click together, and then they lowered their heads in shame and guilt.

"I…I can't believe this…the things that I said, I…I just wanted Mikey to be more proper…not try to label him as a bad person…" Donnie said guiltily.

"Ya not da only one, Donnie; when I told ya about my wish, I…Oh, man…Mikey must be…" Raph said shamefully as he shook his head to get rid of the developing tears from his eyes.

"Listen, we all meant well on how we felt about Mikey's position in this family and team, but we have all realized now that we shouldn't have spoken about him negatively behind his back without knowing if he was in the lair or not…Also, I think we've forgotten about the _positive_ side to Mikey's position, which is being the light of the family…" Leo said calmly as he placed a hand on his brothers' shoulders.

"W-Well, what do we do now? I doubt that he would want to talk to us right now…" Donnie said in a doubtful but concerned tone with Raph nodding in agreement.

"Let's give Mikey some space for now and leave him some pizza when it arrives so that he doesn't go hungry in the night, and we'll talk to him gently tomorrow when everyone is awake and calmer..." Leo advised his brothers before he left to pick up the pizza after he just received an alert on his shell cell from the pizza deliveryman to say that it's arrived.

Raph and Donnie just looked at each other in silence and with sad looks on their faces, before they decided to walk towards the kitchen where they would meet Leo with the pizza when he comes back.

Unbeknownst to them, however, Mikey was in the process of putting together a plan to prove to his brothers that he is not as useless as they think he is.


	2. Chapter 2-Going Solo

Chapter 2-Going Solo

_In Mikey's bedroom…_

When Mikey entered his bedroom, he closed his door instantly so that none of his brothers saw or heard him crying.

He walked over to his bed and laid down on top of his blanket with his comic book held close to his chest before he started to sob heavily as he let out all of his bottled up emotions that he couldn't release in front of his brothers earlier. The reason was that he felt that he was already a burden to them with his past actions, so he didn't want to trouble them even more with his tearful emotions since there was a chance that he would be made fun of or scolded at for doing so.

Mikey just couldn't understand why his brothers would talk about him behind his back in such an awful way, but then again he had a feeling that his brothers would express their real thoughts about his role and purpose in the family and team at some point in their lives. He only wanted to help keep his brothers from going insane by telling them jokes and helping them stay positive during missions, but after what he overheard earlier it was clear that they weren't happy with his actions at all and that showed him how much of a failure he really was. In fact, two of his three older brothers clearly stated that they didn't want much to do with him anymore.

After shedding a few more tears, Mikey sat up and decided that enough was enough of being labelled 'the useless screw-up' in the family and team and he began to hatch a plan on what he could do to prove himself, and it was then that an idea came to him.

"If my brothers say that I'm hardly helpful to them during missions in Cyberspace, then I'll prove them wrong by going in there and getting more of Master Splinter's data bits all by myself…!" Mikey said firmly to himself as he sniffled and wiped the tears from his face.

With his mind made up, Mikey decided to set his alarm for 1am after midnight on his clock and closed his eyes as he laid back down to sleep to re-energise himself since he knew that he had to wait until all his brothers were asleep in their rooms before he could put his plan into motion, and he also knew that he needed to be 100% ready for what's to come.

5 hours later…

Mikey woke up immediately after his alarm went off and turned it off straight away before any of his brothers heard it through the walls. He then rose from his bed and stretched with a yawn before he stood up and walked towards his desk and grabbed a piece of paper and pen to leave his brothers a message in case they find out that he was not here, before he walked out through his bedroom door, despite still feeling a little tired from waking up too early.

He reached the computer system and was surprised to find that Donnie was not there, meaning that Leo must have forced him to go to bed since he would stay up all night to try and find more of Master Splinter's data bits on his own. With this in mind, Mikey felt relieved knowing that no-one was there to stop him from carrying out his plan and wasted no time in heading towards the main computer to start up the cyber portal.

Before he stepped onto the portal's platform, Mikey grabbed his cyber device that would be used to safely store Master Splinter's data bits in as soon as he found some.

"Ok, here I go…It's now or never…" Mikey said quietly with determination before he walked onto the platform and the machine began to slowly transfer him into Cyberspace.

_In Cyberspace…_

Once his body was fully transported into Cyberspace, Mikey immediately activated his Cybernaut Armour and his cyber vehicle, which he hopped onto and turned on his navigation screen before he started driving. A minute later, he got a signal that was coming from the data bits which were located 2 miles away from where he was now, so he increased his speed and followed the path that was in front of him and towards where the signal was coming from.

Soon, Mikey reached his destination and he smiled with relief as he saw a large cluster of Master Splinter's data bits right in front of him. He then got off of his vehicle and walked closer towards the cluster whilst he took out his device to turn on the storage app, readying it for the transfer and storing process.

As he was doing this, however, Mikey didn't notice that an ominous presence was watching him from a distance and it was slowly starting to move closer towards him through the electrical currents flowing through the same path that Mikey was standing on.

After a couple of minutes, the data bits were successfully transferred and stored safely within Mikey's device, much to his relief.

"Alright, I did it! Now, I should get back to-"

"Well, well, well…What do we have here?"

Mikey was cut off suddenly by an eerie voice that he recognised all too well, and he turned around to find the source of that voice in front of him; it was the Cyber Shredder!

"Shredder!" Mikey shouted as he quickly hid his device with the data bits in and then readied his weapons.

"So, the youngest and foolish turtle has decided to enter Cyberspace all alone and without his older brothers to protect him!" Cyber Shredder taunted as he readied his bladed gauntlet.

"You don't know a thing about me, Shred head, and I don't need my brothers to protect me as much as I used to now!" Mikey said firmly despite feeling a bit nervous since he really was all alone with his and his family's greatest enemy.

"Don't you, now? Well then, this shall make it easier for me to take away that of which keeps your strength going…" Cyber Shredder said as he got closer to Mikey.

"Wha-Aarrrggghh!" Mikey was cut off by the extreme amount of pain as Cyber Shredder attacked and stabbed him swiftly through his chest with his bladed gauntlet, revealing a pierced piece of his heart in a digital form from behind when the blades went completely through him. Cyber Shredder then grabbed Mikey's heart piece and slowly pulled out his blades, causing Mikey to fall and land hard on the ground as he gasped for air before the Cyber Shredder spoke.

"Now, your brothers will have no choice but to come for you and it will be because of you that they will run right into my hands…ah ha ha ha ha ha ha!"


	3. Chapter 3-Mikey's in Trouble, Big Time!

Chapter 3-Mikey's in Trouble, Big Time!

_In the Lair…_

The sound of an alarm suddenly rang throughout the lair and, in an instant, Donnie ran straight to the main computer from his bedroom to figure out what was going on. Shortly after, Leo and Raph appeared with sleep still in their eyes.

"What is it, Donnie?" Leo asked tiredly but he was slightly more alert than Raph.

"Someone has entered Cyberspace through the cyber portal without us knowing, and the Cyber Shredder is there with that person!" Donnie answered seriously.

"What!? But who da Shell would do dat?" Raph questioned whilst in shock.

After a moment of silence and thought, Leo noticed first that Mikey wasn't with them when they went to the computer system.

"Guys, where's Mikey…?" He asked nervously with a bad feeling building in his heart before he watched his brothers' eyes widened.

"Ya don't think he'd…?" Raph said.

"Check his room first before we jump to conclusions," Donnie said quickly.

Leo and Raph bolted towards Mikey's room and opened the door with a heavy slam, only to find it empty.

"Raph, look! He left a note!" Leo alerted his brother as he pointed at the folded piece of paper that was laying on top of Mikey's blanket on the bed.

Raph immediately went over to the bed, picked up the note and read it aloud.

'_Dear bros,_

_I'm sorry… but I heard everything when you all talked about me last night…It made me realise just how much of a screw-up and failure I really am to you and father…_

_So, I've decided that in order for me to make things right with you guys, I made it my mission to retrieve more of father's data bits, alone. _

_In other words, I will have already entered Cyberspace by the time you have found and read this letter._

_If I fail or don't make it back alive, I just want you all to know that I love you and that I'm sorry for screwing everything up and for not being the brother that you all wanted me to be. Also, tell Donnie that it was all _my _fault that father is scattered in Cyberspace, not his…_

_Wish me luck, _

_Mikey'_

By the time he finished reading Mikey's note, Raph was shaking with a face full of shock and disbelief before he blinked to remove the developing tears of guilt in his eyes. He then looked at Leo who was feeling the same way as him, but Leo allowed his tears to fall due to feeling too ashamed and guilty to wipe them away before he shook his head and snapped out of his shock and spoke to Raph with urgency in his voice.

"We've got to go! Mikey's in trouble!"

"Yeah, big time!" Raph replied before he quickly followed Leo out of Mikey's room and ran back towards the computer room, where Donnie was waiting anxiously for their return.

"What's wrong!?" He asked when he looked at the concerned and desperate look on their faces.

"Mikey's not in his room, but he's in Cyberspace!" Leo answered.

"Yeah, and he left us a message…" Raph said before he handed Donnie the note that Mikey left them.

Donnie took the note and gave it a quick read before his eyes widened in shock and disbelief whilst doing so.

"Mikey…but that means if he's in Cyberspace, then-" Donnie said before he headed towards the main computer in a hurry and looked at the screen that showed the two signals on the cyber map, and then his mind and heart raced when he looked at the vitals of Mikey's signal. "Oh, no…!"

"Donnie?" Leo called out when he saw the look of horror on his purple-banded brother's face.

"Mikey's vitals…they're very weak!" Donnie responded in a worried tone.

"Then we need ta get him out of there and away from da Shredder, now!" Raph demanded as he hurried over to the cyber portal platform.

"Right, let's go!" Leo said in agreement before he and Donnie followed Raph's lead and entered Cyberspace.

Once they all entered Cyberspace, the three older brothers activated their Cybernaut armour and their cyber vehicles before they pinpointed Mikey's location and took off at full speed ahead. As soon as they arrived at their destination to where Mikey and Cyber Shredder were located, they all felt like their hearts were about to stop when they saw what was in front of them; Mikey was laid flat on the ground, barely moving and struggling to breathe, and he also had a digital gash on his chest where the Cyber Shredder, who was standing next to him with Mikey's piece of heart in his hand, attacked him.

"MIKEY!" Leo, Raph and Donnie shouted as they got off their vehicles and charged towards the Cyber Shredder with an all-in-one attack, but the Cyber Shredder quickly dissolved and moved further away from them seconds before they could land the attack.

"Ah, you have finally arrived to rescue your weak little brother…" The Cyber Shredder mocked them before he watched the turtles gather around Mikey, with Raph standing in front of them and facing the Cyber Shredder, Leo holding him carefully in his arms and Donnie assessing his condition.

"Mikey…? Mikey, look at me…open your eyes, please…!" Leo begged his baby brother to respond to his voice as he held him close. Mikey tried to do what his oldest brother said but he was very weak and he could only respond by groaning and twitching his closed eyelids.

"His pulse is weak but steady…we need to get him out of here now!" Donnie said urgently whilst he kept his fingers on Mikey's wrist where his pulse was.

"What did ya do ta my brother, Shred head!?" Raph yelled out in anger and rage building up within him as he confronted the monster who wounded his brother.

"Oh, so _now _you're concerned about what happened to your weakling of a brother, are you? Well, I thought that I was doing you all a favour by taking away a part of what keeps his strength going…" The Cyber Shredder answered in a venomous tone before he lifted his hand that had a part of Mikey's fragmented heart, which was beating slightly in his grip.

"Wait…t-that's…" Leo said in a stutter when he and then Donnie looked at the object in Cyber Shredder's hand.

"Half of Mikey's heart!" Donnie concluded as his eyes widened and panic struck him hard like a knife to the stomach when he figured out that the heart fragment and Mikey's chest wound were related.

"Very good, Donatello…And if you want to get it back for him, I suggest that you come and fight me, in my domain! Farewell, turtles…Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha!" The Cyber Shredder said before his body dissolved again and disappeared into the electrical current below everyone's feet.

"Hey! Get back here, ya coward!" Raph yelled out as he was about to chase after him, but Leo stopped him.

"Raph, no! Mikey is our top priority right now. We will figure out a plan to find and fight the Shredder and get Mikey's heart fragment back later, but we need to get Mikey out of here first!"

Raph looked at Mikey in Leo's arms and his frustrated face softened when he saw how terrible he looked before he watched Donnie activate a portal that would take them straight back to the lair.

"Are ya sure dat it's safe ta take him back home without da other half of his heart, Donnie?" Raph asked in concern.

"I don't know for sure, Raph, but when I looked at his wound and his heart fragment, I noticed that they were made out of digital matter since our bodies were adapted to the laws of Cyberspace. I think Mikey will have his heart still intact, just damaged in some way…" Donnie replied with an unsure look on his face.

"Well, let's get him back home and find out! Hurry, he's not looking too good!" Leo commanded before he gently lifted his baby brother in a bridal style hold, and then headed towards the portal and went through it with Raph and Donnie following him close behind.

As soon as they arrived back at the lair, Leo, Raph and Donnie gathered around Mikey who they noticed had opened his eyes a little bit.

"Mikey? Hey, you ok?" Leo said worryingly but softly before he and his brothers watched as Mikey moved his arm weakly to grab his cyber device from his belt and hovered it towards Donnie with a small but pained smile on his face.

"H…H-Here…" Mikey managed to say in a rasp before Donnie quickly grabbed his hand with the device held in it.

"W-Why are you giving me this, Mikey? What's in it?" Donnie asked with a confused look on his face.

"D-Da-d…" Mikey answered him weakly before he passed out and his head rolled to the side, facing Leo's plastron.

"Mikey!" Leo and Raph shouted as panic struck when Mikey wasn't responding to them, but Donnie then spoke whilst he remained calm despite feeling shocked about what Mikey said about what was inside the device.

"Get him to the infirmary and put him on oxygen immediately!"

"But Donnie, what did Mikey mean when he said-" Leo tried to ask a question but Donnie cut him off.

"I'll explain later, Leo, just get him comfortable and stable! I'll be right there…"

Leo and Raph said nothing more and did what they were told by taking Mikey straight to the infirmary to do what they can to keep him from getting worse.

Donnie watched them go before he looked at Mikey's cyber device in his hand, which was showing the storage app on the screen.

"Don't tell me…" Donnie said to himself before he went to his computer and connected the device into the machine. As soon as this was done, the screen showing Master Splinter's incomplete body suddenly appeared and the storage app automatically started to transfer the gathered data bits from the device and into the computer. Donnie then watched in surprise and shock as the gap in Master Splinter's body began to slowly fill up until the line, which stopped at the upper arms since the last gathering of the data bits, reached closer to and stopped at Master Splinter's ears.

"Oh, Mikey…" Donnie slowly sat on his chair with tears developing in his wide eyes as realization sunk in; Mikey really did try to be more helpful to him and his other brothers by going into Cyberspace alone and collect a large amount of data bits, though he'll bet that Mikey didn't plan on running into the Cyber Shredder in the process. Donnie took advantage of his moment alone and started to break down silently so that he wouldn't cry when he goes to the infirmary and check on his brothers.

"I'm sorry, Mikey…I'm so sorry…" He said quietly as he continued with his emotional release for the next couple of minutes before he stood up and wiped his face as he began to walk towards the infirmary with a determined look on his face.

Because he knew in his heart and mind that his baby brother needed him, now more than ever...


	4. Chapter 4-A Damaged and Broken Heart

Chapter 4-A Damaged and Broken Heart

Leo and Raph gently placed a now pale Mikey onto one of the infirmary beds, sat him up slightly and covered him with the white blanket as well as another but thicker blanket after they noticed Mikey had started to shiver as soon as they entered the room. Raph then went to fetch an oxygen tank from the corner of the room and Leo attached an oxygen mask to it before he placed it over Mikey's nose and mouth and turned it on.

After doing this, Leo brought over an EKG and vital signs machine and he began to stick the patches onto Mikey's chest before he turned on the machine, which started to beep in accordance to Mikey's heartbeat. It was then that the two older brothers noticed something was wrong as soon as they heard and looked at Mikey's heart rhythm.

"Is it me or does Mikey's heart look and sound a lot slower than usual?" Leo questioned as he looked at Raph with a concerned look on his face.

"Yeah, I already noticed…ya don't have ta tell me twice, bro…" Raph answered quietly as well as in concern before he walked over to Mikey and held his hand gently in his own as he sat on the chair next to the bed, with Leo doing the same on the other side.

"Mikey…I-I…" Raph spoke after a moment of silence with only the sounds of the machines in the air, but he swallowed thickly as he couldn't think of what to say next since he was too shaken up from what he had witnessed earlier, and his eyes were slowly filling up with tears of guilt and regret.

"It's ok, Raph…take your time…" Leo said with encouragement in his words whilst he gently squeezed Mikey's hand, before he heard Raph speak again.

"I-I…I'm so sorry, little bro…None of us, not even me, wanted dis ta happen ta ya…yeah, you're a pain in our shells sometimes, but…We still love ya, bud…"

"That's right…and I-I'm sorry too, Mikey…I should've spoken with you earlier, but…instead, I just left you all alone…with only the negative words implanted in your head…Forgive me, bro…" Leo said before tears fell from his closed eyes.

Suddenly, both Leo and Raph felt their hands being squeezed weakly and they looked up to see Mikey's eyes starting to twitch and then slowly open until they were halfway up, but wide enough for him to see his brothers' sad but relieved faces, causing him to develop a small smile on his face.

"Mikey!" Leo and Raph said softly since they didn't want to make Mikey's condition worse by being too loud.

"H-He-y…d-dudes…" Mikey responded weakly as he took a breath each time he said one or two words.

"Hey, little brother…I'm glad you're awake again, you had us really worried back there…" Leo said as he stroked Mikey's head soothingly before he watched his little brother look down and frown slightly.

"Hey now…It's ok, Mike…" Raph said as he gave Mikey's hand another gentle squeeze to comfort him, but Mikey just shook his head slowly with now tear-filled eyes.

"N-No…I-It's not…I-I just…c-caused more…p-problems…for y-you all…I-I'm so…s-sorry…I-It's all…my f-fault…" Mikey said breathlessly as his tears fell down his cheeks before he felt someone give him a gentle hug.

"Shh, shh shhh…That's not true, Mikey…we encouraged your actions because we only focused on the negative side of your actions and, as a result, made us forget about how amazing and important you really are to us all…" It was Leo, who then released his baby brother and gave him a warm smile as he wiped the tears from Mikey's eyes.

"Yeah, bro…and it's our fault fa what happened ta ya back there, not yours…" Raph said in agreement after he quickly wiped away his own tears.

"I, too, agree with that statement…"

The three turtles turned their heads towards the infirmary entrance to see Donnie walking towards them with a sad smile on his face. He then slowly sat on the edge of Mikey's bed on Raph's side, where Raph moved aside to give him some space, and placed a comforting hand on Mikey's cheek.

"D-Don…I-I'm…" Mikey nervously started to speak with wide and tear-filled eyes.

"Shhh…there's no need to apologise or say anything else, Mikey…You're badly hurt because of us, so we should be the ones apologising to you. I'll admit that even though what you did was dangerous and a bit reckless, I know that you were only trying to show us how vital you really are to us all since we made you feel like you're not…Also, I want to thank you…for finding a huge amount of father's data bits for us, because now we're one step closer to bringing him back home to us!" Donnie said before he gave him a gentle hug, which Mikey returned by nuzzling his neck after saying, "T-Thanks, Don…". Leo and Raph just stayed silent as they watched on with warm smiles and tears in their eyes.

After a moment, Donnie released Mikey from the hug and Leo spoke next but in a slightly more serious tone.

"Mikey, do you remember what happened back in Cyberspace, when the Cyber Shredder attacked you?"

Mikey looked at him with wide eyes; he remembered everything from the discussion about him to Cyber Shredder stabbing him in the heart, causing him to struggle even more with his breathing.

"Hey, hey…easy, Mikey…deep breaths, you're safe at the lair with us…" Donnie soothed Mikey as he rubbed his arm for comfort. After a minute, Mikey calmed down and began to talk.

"I-I remember everything…t-the discussion…g-getting a cluster…of father's d-data bits… S-Shredder…appearing out of n-nowhere…and s-stabbing my heart…" By the time he finished talking, Mikey was gasping so Donnie increased his oxygen slightly to give him a helping hand in catching his breath.

"Alright, Mikey…That's all we needed to know, so just rest and take it easy now, ok?" Leo said as he placed a comforting hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Before you go to sleep though, bro, I need to do an ultrasound scan of your heart to see what exactly is wrong with it after the Shredder took half of it in digital form…" Donnie announced before he got up from Mikey's bed and went to retrieve the ultrasound scanner.

Once Mikey was laid flat on his bed, Donnie prepared the machine and placed the scanning rod on top of Mikey's chest after putting some cool gel on it, and then started to move it around to search for any abnormalities. After a moment, Donnie noticed something abnormal on the right side of Mikey's heart.

"Oh, no…" Donnie whispered, but Leo heard it.

"Don, what is it?" He asked worryingly.

"The muscle walls on the right side of his heart have stiffened and become inflamed, hence why his heart rate has slowed down severely and his breathing is irregular…" Donnie answered in his 'Doctor Don' tone.

"Dat Shredder…he's gonna pay fa dis!" Raph growled as he clenched a fist in front of his face.

"Calm down, Raph, we'll get Mikey's other half of his heart back from the Shredder as soon as we come up with a plan…" Leo said as he placed a calming hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Which we need to think about putting into action _now_ because if we leave Mikey's heart like this for too long, it will cease to beat and cause Mikey to go into cardiac arrest!" Donnie said firmly but calmly.

The other turtles, including Mikey, gasped and looked at each other before Leo asked Donnie to have a word with him in the computer room, whilst Raph stayed behind to look after Mikey, who had fallen asleep shortly after Leo and Donnie left the room.

/

_Meanwhile in Cyberspace…_

The Cyber Shredder was standing in his domain and was looking at Mikey's heart fragment in awe and curiosity before he decided to try something.

"Now then, let's see how fragile your heart really is, Michelangelo…Ha ha ha ha...!" He said before he slowly began to squeeze the heart fragment in his hand.

The heart fragment soon started to beat more slowly and small digital pieces began to break off of it due to the strain of being squeezed really hard.

/

_Back in the lair…_

"Don, do you have an estimate on how much time we have before his condition worsens?" Leo asked in a serious but concerned tone.

"Well, judging by the amount of inflammation and stiffness in his heart's walls, I think he has around 7 hours before his heart stops beating completely," Donnie answered despite feeling a bit unsure about his prognosis.

"Can he be revived right after that happens?" Leo then asked before he watched Donnie shake his head slowly with a sad look on his face as he spoke.

"No, Mikey's heart will no longer be strong enough to keep beating after the point where his time has run out…"

"Ok, then let's-"

"MIKEY!"

Leo was cut off by Raph's terrified scream and he and Donnie wasted no time and ran back into the infirmary to see Raph performing CPR on Mikey, who was now limp and not breathing.

"What happened!?" Leo asked in a panicked state.

"Ngh…I don't know…he was fine a second ago…and then he looked like he was in pain…and then he just…crashed…!" Raph answered whilst pumping his baby brother's heart before he breathed into his mouth and then repeated the process.

"Leo, get the defibrillator! It's on my desk over there!" Donnie shouted and pointed at his desk in the corner of the room as he ran towards Mikey's bed to assist Raph.

Leo immediately went over and grabbed the defibrillator from the desk, ran over to the bed and passed it to Donnie who turned it on and allowed it to charge for a few seconds before he grabbed the device and placed them on Mikey's chest.

"Stand back, guys!" Donnie shouted to warn his brothers to step away from the bed.

"Clear!" He then shouted before Mikey's body was jolted by the electrical current from the defibrillator, but he remained still and unresponsive.

"Charging…and clear!" Donnie tried again, only to get the same result.

"Come on, Mikey…please, not now…" Donnie whispered with tears in his eyes before he used the defibrillator again, whilst Leo and Raph stood by and watched the process with horrified faces.

_/_

_In Cyberspace…_

The Cyber Shredder was still squeezing Mikey's heart fragment very tightly before he slowly released it, which allowed it to restore its natural shape and the broken bits to reattach themselves to it.

"I see…so his heart is not as weak as I thought, but he still cannot survive without his other half in the real world. All I need to do now…is wait for the turtles to come and face me…so that I can put an end to their miserable lives..." The Cyber Shredder said as he continued to look at Mikey's heart fragment in his hand with evil red eyes.

/

_In the lair…_

Donnie was about to use the defibrillator for a fifth time before he heard it; the sounds of a sharp gasp and then coughing came from Mikey's mouth as his eyes opened widely whilst he tried desperately to catch his breath.

"Mikey…" Donnie said in relief before he put down the defibrillator and went over to put the oxygen mask back onto Mikey's face.

"Deep breaths, Mikey…easy…that's it…just relax…" He then said softly to help Mikey with his breathing.

Leo and Raph, on the other hand, just stood there in shock and surprise for another minute before they snapped out of it and walked over to Mikey's bed despite feeling a little shaky still.

"Mikey…thank goodness…" Leo whispered as he gave Mikey a gentle hug.

"Oh, bro…don't scare us like dat!" Raph said softly before he gently held his baby brother's hand again.

Mikey looked at his brother with tired eyes before they began to fill with tears as he spoke weakly.

"S-Sorry…I-I'm s-scared…b-bros…"

"Don't worry, Mikey; we're here for you..." Leo reassured his sick baby brother as he stroked his hand with his thumb.

"Dat's right, and we'll teach dat oversized tin can a serious lesson!" Raph said before he punched his fist in his hand with a smirk.

"Yes, and I promise you that we will make you well again by getting your heart fragment back!" Donnie said in agreement with a determined look on his face.

After hearing his brothers' words of resolve, Mikey developed a small smile on his face and nodded to say that he believed in them before he yawned and began to feel sleepy but he struggled to not fall asleep due to his fear of not waking up again.

"It's alright, Mikey, we'll make sure that you'll wake up again. Rest now…" Leo said softly before he stroked his baby brother's head soothingly to lull him to sleep.

"M'kay…L-Love y-you, bros…" Mikey managed to say before he went to sleep whilst still wearing his small smile.

"Love you too, bro…" His older brothers said together whilst they smiled warmly at their baby brother's words before Donnie covered him back up with the blankets and tucked him in. After a moment of silence, Leo spoke up.

"Alright, guys…let's get started on making a plan to save Mikey!"

"Right!" Raph and Donnie replied with determination before they left the infirmary to discuss how their plan should be carried out.


	5. Chapter 5-Hatching a Plan

Chapter 5-Hatching a Plan

Leo, Raph and Donnie walked out of the infirmary and headed towards the dining table near the kitchen to use as a suitable meeting place to discuss their best course of action on how they can get Mikey's heart fragment back from the Cyber Shredder. Before they started, however, Raph spoke in a concerned tone.

"Are ya sure dat Mikey will be alright without any of us watchin' over him? What if his heart stops again outta nowhere!?"

"Don't worry, Raph; we're not far from the infirmary and the door is wide open, so the alarm will be loud enough for us to hear if his heart does stop again," Donnie answered his red-banded brother who nodded in understanding before they turned to look at Leo as he started speaking.

"Alright, let's get started on how we should carry out our plan. First off, Donnie has informed me that Mikey has around 7 hours or less until his heart stops permanently, so we need to do this within that timeframe. Any suggestions?"

"I say we go into Cyberspace, track down da Shredder, and take back Mikey's heart fragment back by brute force!" Raph said with a smirk before he slammed a fist in his hand as he said the last few words.

"Using brute force to get Mikey's heart fragment back is not an option, Raph because that's exactly what the Shredder is expecting us to do once we find him. There is a high chance that he will destroy the heart fragment and then strike us with our guards down as soon as we charge at him blindly!" Donnie argued firmly against his red-banded brother.

"I'll have to agree with Donnie on that, Raph, because we'll make it too easy for the Shredder to take us out if we just focused on fighting him," Leo said in Donnie's defense.

"Well, what do _you guys _have in mind, Fearless and Brainiac!?" Raph questioned in a frustrated tone after his plan was slammed down instantly.

"I think the first thing we need to do is to take a deep breath and calm down…Arguing with one another and getting all worked up about this will only make things more difficult for us and it will also waste more precious time that we have left, and that has now come to just 6 hours remaining…" Donnie answered firmly but calmly before he looked at the clock hanging on the kitchen wall to check the time.

Leo and Raph agreed with Donnie and decided to take a moment to calm their minds down by taking in slow, deep breaths before they eventually resumed their discussion in a more relaxed manner.

"Alright, so what da you guys have in mind?" Raph asked again but in a less angry tone before he heard Donnie speak up first.

"Well, we all know that Mikey's heart fragment is made of digital matter like his body was when he was in Cyberspace, so we can't take it back to the real world with us as it may turn to dust before we could give it back to him…"

"So, are you saying that if we were to return Mikey's heart fragment back to him, we would have to do this by bringing him with us when we go back into Cyberspace to face the Cyber Shredder?" Leo guessed with a tint of uneasiness in his heart.

"I'm afraid so, Leo…it might be risky to bring him with us since he was already in bad shape when we first found him next to the Shredder, but there is no other way to do this…we'll just have to do this quickly without any distractions or delays…" Donnie answered with a sigh, knowing the risks involved.

Leo sighed heavily at what Donnie just said and looked at Raph who was thinking the same thing as he was, which was the feeling of concern about the idea of taking Mikey with them to Cyberspace and risking his health and safety in the process, but he and Raph both reluctantly nodded in agreement with Donnie's idea, knowing that there really was no other option.

"Ok then, we'll take that risk. So, now with that section of the plan agreed upon and in place, let's now think about how we should confront the Shredder without causing damage to Mikey's heart fragment…" Leo then said in a serious tone before he then voiced his opinion on how it should go. "I believe that we should carefully approach the Shredder and then jump him when he is away from Mikey's heart fragment to avoid damaging it…what do you think, guys?"

"Sounds good, but da problem with dat last part is dat da Shredder might not let go of Mikey's heart fragment so easily, and he might see through our plan as soon as we make a move…" Raph answered with an uncertain look on his face.

"That's why I'm going to have Donnie hang back for a moment whilst you and I charge in and pin the Shredder down long enough for Donnie, when given the signal, to release the heart fragment and grab it before the Shredder could break free from our hold," Leo countered back as he looked over at Donnie when he spoke about his part in the plan.

"I'm happy to do that, Leo," Donnie said in agreement with a smile.

"Great! Thanks, Don," Leo said with a grateful smile.

"Ok, but now da question is; how do we put Mikey's heart fragment back into him when we do get it back? I mean, it's not like we can just shove it back into his chest through da same way da Shredder did when he stabbed Mikey earlier…" Raph said with his arms crossed and a confused and grimaced look on his face when he said the last part.

"No, but what if we create a device that works in a similar way to how we retrieve Master Splinter's data bits and transfer them into the computer system, and instead make it to only gather Mikey's heart fragment bit-by-bit and transfer it back into his body through his chest?" Donnie said in thought with a finger under his chin.

"That sounds like a good idea, Donnie. Do you think you'll be able to create such a device with such little time, though?" Leo asked in concern since there was a chance that a lot of time would be lost in order to create such a device.

"Only one way to find out…I'll get straight to it whilst you two go back to Mikey and keep an eye on him…that is, if we have come to a final agreement on the plan that we have just put together?" Donnie said before he looked from Leo to Raph to see if they are in agreement, which they were by nodding towards him with determined looks on their faces.

"Alright then, let's get to it!" Donnie then said before he went over to the computer area to begin on creating his new invention, whilst Leo and Raph headed back towards the infirmary to check on and look after Mikey.


	6. Chapter 6-Comfort and Reassurance

Chapter 6-Comfort and Reassurance

Leo and Raph enter the infirmary to see that Mikey was still fast asleep when they approached his bed, so they decided to sit on their chairs and observe him closely in case his heart stopped again. After a few minutes of sitting in the quiet room with just the sound of the machines being heard, Raph decided to break it.

"Grr…it's too quiet! I never thought dat I would miss Mikey's constant chatterin' and laughter…" He said quietly in annoyance and frustration, before he lowered his head slightly with a sad sigh.

"I know, Raph…I miss it too. It's weird how we would tell Mikey to be quiet and be more focused back then, and now we want him to do the opposite…we really can't make up our minds about how our little brother should behave, can we?" Leo said as he shook his head sadly.

"No…But I don't think we should, anyway; he's alright as he is now...What was I thinkin' when I said those things about him!?" Raph said as he put a hand to his forehead in frustration when he thought back about his negative words about Mikey.

"We were tired from another challenging day of data bit hunting, Raph, and we should have taken Mikey's advice when he asked us to join him on his skateboarding trip earlier because it would've helped us to clear our heads and relax before our next trip to Cyberspace. Instead, our desperation to find and bring back Master Splinter made us turn him down, and then we allowed our exhaustion to take over our feelings on Mikey's actions…" Leo answered his red-banded brother before he reached a hand over to Mikey's and held it.

"Yeah, and now look at him; laying there, clinging on ta life by a thread…All because he wanted ta prove us wrong when we said dat he was useless ta us…!" Raph said firmly before he bowed his head low as self-anger coursing through his body.

Leo just sat there and let his immediate younger brother have his moment before he sighed and he too bowed his head in guilt for his part in Mikey's current predicament.

"R-Raph-ie…"

Both Raph and Leo quickly lifted their heads up as soon as a raspy voice was heard from the ailing orange-banded turtle in bed. They immediately noticed that Mikey's eyes were open halfway and were looking over Raph in sadness.

"Hey, Mikey…How ya doin'?" Raph said softly as he held his baby brother's hand gently in his own. He watched as Mikey developed a small tired smile on his face before he spoke.

"I-I'm…ok…L-Listen, bro…it's n-not…your f-fault…I-It's mine…"

"Mikey, it's alright…we know what ya sayin', but we all know dat I'm right…ya went into Cyberspace by yourself and got hurt badly cos we made ya, by hurting ya emotionally…"

"Raph's right, Mikey, so stop trying to put everything we did to you on your shoulders…promise me, ok?" Leo said as he looked at his baby brother with a slightly serious look on his face.

Mikey was about to deny what his brothers said and argue back, but after looking at his brothers' serious but pleading faces, he just sighed and slowly nodded at them, much to Leo and Raph's relief. Then, Raph suddenly remembered that he needed to tell Mikey about their plan.

"Oh, yeah! Good news, bro; we've managed ta come up with a plan ta get ya heart fragment back!" He said before he gave Mikey's hand a gentle squeeze.

"R-Really…?" Mikey said with wider eyes.

"Yes, and right now, Donnie is currently in the computer room and working on an invention that will help transfer your heart fragment back into you whilst in Cyberspace," Leo said with a smile on his face.

Mikey was surprised and stunned before he smiled after he heard the news; even though what they're doing is risky since they will be facing the Shredder whilst trying to get back the heart fragment in one piece, his brothers were determined to do whatever it takes to save his life despite everything that had happened these past few hours.

"T-Thanks, bros…b-but…w-what if…" Mikey began but he was soon cut off by Leo who placed a hand on his shoulder as he spoke.

"Don't worry, Mikey, nothing bad will happen to any of us. I promise you; we will succeed in this mission with everyone safe and well…"

"Yeah!" Raph said in agreement.

Mikey knew that there was nothing he could do to convince his brothers to not risk their lives just for his sake, so he just laid there and smiled warmly at Leo and Raph, who smiled back at him in relief that he accepted their plan without arguing back.

Suddenly, Mikey gasped with wide eyes and grabbed his chest weakly as he felt another feeling of intense pain in his chest, which was worse than before.

"Mikey!?" Leo and Raph shouted in unison as they began to hear the machines that were connected to Mikey start buzzing like crazy before Mikey went limp with closed eyes and the sound of a flat-lined heart could be heard echoing in the room.

"NO!" Raph shouted as he looked at a collapsed Mikey in his arms.

"Raph, get Donnie! I'll do what I can here, hurry!" Leo commanded firmly as he took Mikey from Raph's arms and laid him flat on the bed before he started to perform CPR on him.

Raph reluctantly ran out of the infirmary to go and get Donnie from the computer room.

/

_Earlier, in Cyberspace…_

The Cyber Shredder was becoming impatient and he was trying his best to keep himself from crushing Mikey's heart fragment to pieces, so instead, he decided to do a bit of persuasion to get the turtles to go after him faster by slowly squeezing the heart fragment again.

"Time for Round 2…Ha ha ha ha!" He said darkly as he watched the heart fragment start to beat slowly and tiny bits broke away from it again whilst he squeezed it even more.

/

_Back in the lair…_

"DONNIE!"

Donnie looked up from his work after he heard Raph's voice call out his name, and he could tell that judging by how loud and panicked it was, there was something wrong.

"Raph, what's wrong!?" Donnie said anxiously as he stood up from his seat and moved quickly towards his red-banded brother.

"It's Mikey…his heart's stopped again!" Raph answered back with a panicked and horrified look on his face.

"Not again…!" Donnie said with wide eyes as he and Raph ran back inside the infirmary, where they saw Leo continuously trying but failing to bring Mikey back around.

"Come on, Mikey…Come on…!" Leo said quietly and anxiously before he breathed into Mikey's mouth and watched as his baby brother's chest rose but remained still after it deflated.

"Raph, the defibrillator!" Donnie shouted as he headed towards the bed and pointed at the device on the desk.

Raph nodded and swiftly went over to it and grabbed the defibrillator before he hurried back towards the bed and gave it to Donnie, who switched it on and allowed it to charge.

"Leo, stand back!" Donnie warned his blue-banded brother who was now crying as he breathed into Mikey's mouth one more time before he moved away from the bed to allow Donnie to use the defibrillator.

"Clear!" He shouted before the device shocked Mikey's body, which jolted and then went still again with no signs of stirring.

"Charging…and Clear!" Donnie tried again, but he still got the same result. By now, Leo was being comforted by Raph who was also starting to develop tears in his eyes.

"Come on, Mikey…Fight it! You can do it!" He whispered as he watched the scene play out in front of him and Leo.

_/_

_In Cyberspace…_

The Cyber Shredder continued to squeeze Mikey's heart fragment for a few more seconds before he slowly released it and watched as it began to return to its original shape and the bits broken off started to gather and fix back onto where they once were.

"Soon, Michelangelo will no longer be strong enough to endure this 'special treatment', and his brothers will definitely begin to start making their way towards my domain to retrieve what was their brother's…ha ha ha ha!" He said as he continued to watch over the heart fragment with an evil grin and wait for the turtles to come.

/

_In the lair…_

As he was about to use the defibrillator again, Donnie stopped in his tracks as he heard Mikey take in a deep breath and opened his eyes widely in the process.

"Mikey!" He said before he put the defibrillator down and reached for the oxygen mask to put onto Mikey's face again, but Leo had beat him to it and gently placed it onto their baby brother's face.

"It's ok, Mikey…deep breaths…we're right here…" Leo soothed as he, Raph and Donnie worked to make sure that Mikey was comfortable and breathing well on his own. Once he was more relaxed, Mikey opened his now tear-filled eyes slightly and spoke to his brothers in a faint whisper.

"B-Bros…S-Shred-der…h-hurt…"

His older brothers froze and looked at him in shock with wide eyes realized what Mikey meant; there was a strong possibility that the Shredder was doing something terrible to Mikey's heart fragment to be making Mikey's heart stop in the real world. Donnie was the first to snap out of his shock and turned back to an anxious Mikey.

"Shhh…, we know, Mikey…the Shredder is doing this to you, but don't worry; we won't let him use your heart fragment to hurt you again…" Donnie said calmly as he stroked his brother's head soothingly to ease his anxiety.

"Well, we need ta do it soon, bros, cos I don't think Mikey can take another attack like dat…" Raph said in concern whilst wiping away the fallen tears from Mikey's scared and tired face.

"You're right, Raph…Donnie, how's your invention going?" Leo asked in a serious tone.

"It's almost done, Leo. I just need to add a couple of more things to it and then it should be ready," Donnie answered confidently before Leo nodded and spoke again.

"Good. Because as soon as you're done, we are going straight into Cyberspace and getting Mikey's heart fragment back!"


	7. Chapter 7-Let's do this!

Chapter 7-Let's do this!

It had been half an hour since Mikey had another attack, and the activity within the lair was high.

Donnie was back in the computer area and putting the finishing touches to the new invention that would help to store and transfer Mikey's heart fragment back into his little brother's chest.

Leo and Raph were preparing themselves and Mikey for the upcoming mission; the two older brothers were discussing how they should carry Mikey, who was watching and listening to his brothers with concern flowing in his body since he was too weak to walk or fight by himself.

"Do you think you can carry him whilst we're in Cyberspace, Raph? It's only until we find and confront the Shredder…" Leo asked his red-banded brother.

"Yeah, ya can count on me, Leo. What's worryin' me, though, is there's a chance dat Mike might not last long in there. What if he…ya know…?" Raph said quietly before his voice began to shake when he spoke the last sentence.

"Raph, he won't. You, Donnie and I know that Mikey is a strong ninja who won't let the Shredder defeat him…and we will be at his side, every step of the way…" Leo reassured his immediate younger brother as he placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. Raph then nodded in understanding before he and Leo heard a faint voice call out to them.

"G-Guys…" It was Mikey, and his face featured both concern and bravery when he looked at his older brothers, who walked over to his bed the instant he called out to them.

"Hey, Mikey…what's the matter?" Leo asked whilst feeling worried that his baby brother might not be feeling well again, but instead, he was met with a warm smile from Mikey's face when he got closer to him and held his hand in his own.

"D-Don't worry…a-about me…okay? I-I'll…be fine…" Mikey replied before he weakly squeezed Leo's hand to reassure him that he will be ok during the mission, leaving both of his older brothers stunned and surprised.

"Heh, good ole' Mikey…always tryin' ta cheer us up, even when he's down…" Raph said with a smirk as he gently patted his baby brother's head.

"Yeah…thanks, Mikey. We know that you'll do fine during the mission. and that you _will _get your heart fragment back in time!" Leo said in agreement with more determination in his voice.

A moment later, Donnie walked into the room with something in his hand whilst wearing a positive and determined look on his face.

"It's finished," He said as soon as he got closer to Mikey's bed before he lifted his hand to reveal his invention to his brothers; the device was shaped like a small but thick cylinder tube and there were a set of buttons and a small screen on the side of it.

"I call it 'the Data Tube'. The way it works is similar to how we collect and store Master Splinter's data bits in our cyber devices, but I've reprogrammed it to only transfer and store the digital particles of a living organism's body part that had either got separated from it by force or accidentally whilst in Cyberspace. Also, I've programmed the transfer process so that the heart fragment can be downloaded directly back inside Mikey's chest as soon as all of it has been downloaded inside the device," Donnie explained whilst he pointed at specific parts of the new invention to help his brothers understand how it works.

"Donnie, you are da turtle!" Raph complimented his purple-banded brother before giving him a high-three.

"Great job, Donnie," Leo said with a proud smile.

"D-Donnie…thanks…" Mikey managed to say before he weakly raised a hand for Donnie to hold whilst giving him a watery but grateful smile.

"Hey, we're brothers and I owe you big time for what you did for us earlier…but you should save the thanks for after we get your heart fragment back," Donnie replied as he firmly but gently held Mikey's hand in his own.

"Will Mikey be ok off the oxygen for a while, Donnie?" Leo asked.

"Don't worry, Leo; I have something else up my sleeve that will bide Mikey some time until we confront the Shredder," Donnie answered.

"Alright, then; let's do this!" Leo then cheered.

"Yeah!" His brothers cheered back before Raph carefully lifted Mikey bridal style and followed Leo and Donnie out of the infirmary and towards the computer room.

Once they've all gathered near the cyber portal, Donnie grabbed something from his work desk and walked over to Mikey, who was about to doze off in Raph's arms, and spoke in a soft tone.

"Ok, Mikey, I've made you this mini oxygen mask which will help you breathe and to keep your oxygen intake stable, and it's also specially designed for use in both Cyberspace and the real world…" Donnie placed and secured the mask onto Mikey's mouth and nose before switching on the oxygen, which was coming from two small tanks on each side of the mask.

"Alright, everyone, the time has come…we go into Cyberspace, find the Shredder and get Mikey's heart fragment back in one piece. This is our only chance of success, so no distractions or delays. Understood?" Leo said in his leader-like tone as he looked at each of his brothers, who all nodded in response.

"Good, now let's go!" Leo then said before he walked onto the cyber portal and was transported into Cyberspace, with his brothers following him from close behind.

Before Raph stepped onto the platform, he looked down at Mikey and spoke.

"Don't worry, bro; I promise ya dat we will save ya. Promise me dat ya will stay with us until then, ok?"

Mikey looked up at his red-banded brother with wide eyes due to feeling surprised and stunned at what he said before he snapped out of it and nodded at him with a tired but warm smile on his face, making Raph smile in return.

"Thanks, Mikey…" He said before he slowly walked onto the platform and he and Mikey were transported into Cyberspace.


	8. Chapter 8-Confronting the Shredder

Chapter 8-Confronting the Shredder

The turtles appeared in Cyberspace and activated their Cybernaut armour before they activated their cyber vehicles. Before they hopped onto their vehicles, Leo walked over to Raph and spoke to him.

"Raph, I think me or Donnie should take Mikey during our ride to find the Shredder since your vehicle only has space for one person…"

Raph was not comfortable with the idea at first because he wanted to be the one to keep Mikey safe and protect him during their time in Cyberspace, but after he looked at his vehicle and then at Mikey, who was barely awake and slowly breathing in his oxygen mask, he realised that his brother was right so he nodded and carried Mikey over to Leo and Donnie.

"So, who's gonna take him?" He asked in a 'let's just get this done' tone in his voice.

"I think Leo should look after him because I need to concentrate on pinpointing the Shredder's location. Is that ok with you, Leo?" Donnie spoke first before he turned to Leo as he said the last sentence.

"Yeah, I'll look after him, Raph. I promise…" Leo answered as he turned from Donnie to Raph before he sat on his vehicle and watched as Raph carefully positioned Mikey behind him.

"Hold on tight, Mikey; we're going to go really fast, ok?" Leo told Mikey softly before he heard his baby brother hum in response and wrap his arms around his oldest brother's waist, intertwining his fingers in the process to ensure a secure hold and prevent himself from falling off.

"Guys, I've pinpointed the Shredder's position; it's 2 miles straight ahead from our position!" Donnie alerted his brothers suddenly.

"Nice work, Donnie…Lead the way!" Leo complimented his purple-banded brother before he, Donnie and Raph started their engines and zoomed across the connection lines and towards where the Cyber Shredder was located.

15 minutes later…

The turtles arrived at the Cyber Shredder's domain, which was a largely structured building that had walls coloured in an eerie black and red. As soon as everyone turned their engines off, Raph got out of his vehicle just in time to catch Mikey as he suddenly let go of Leo and tipped sideways.

"Whoa, Mikey!" Raph shouted in alarm after he caught Mikey and lowered him to the ground.

"Are you ok!?" Leo said in great concern when he noticed that Mikey was not looking as well as he was before they came to Cyberspace.

Mikey didn't respond to his oldest brother with a single word and instead just groaned in pain and his hands and eyes twitched but didn't move. Donnie quickly went over to his baby brother and assessed his condition using his gauntlet's mini computer.

"This isn't good; his heart is getting worse a lot quicker than I thought, and the oxygen tanks on his mask are nearly low on oxygen!" He said worryingly as he looked from Mikey to his older brothers.

"Then let's get in there, grab his heart fragment and kick some shell!" Raph said firmly.

"Right! Donnie, once we're inside, you stay close to Mikey until I give you the signal to get his heart fragment from the Shredder's hands after we've restrained him, got it?" Leo said in his leader-like voice tone.

Donnie nodded and, with the help of Raph, placed Mikey onto his back to carry him before he and his older brothers walked inside the Shredder's place.

As soon as they entered, they immediately spotted the Cyber Shredder, who was standing in the middle of his domain whilst looking at Mikey's heart fragment before he turned towards the turtles after he sensed a presence in his domain.

"Ah, turtles…You have kept me waiting…I was just about to give Michelangelo's heart another round of my 'special treatment', but now that you're here, there was no need for it…"

"Shredder…give back our brother's heart fragment and no-one gets hurt…!" Leo warned their enemy as he took a step forward.

"Leonardo...did you not hear me from before; if you really want your brother's heart fragment back, you will have to face me in a battle to retrieve it!" The Cyber Shredder replied firmly before he unsheathed his bladed gauntlet as a sign to say that he refuses to change his mind.

"Ok, Shred Head…You're gonna hand over my brother's heart fragment whether ya like it or not, so bring it on!" Raph said as his rage was boiling and building up after he heard what the Cyber Shredder just said.

"Very well, prepare to be destroyed!" The Cyber Shredder yelled back.

Before the Cyber Shredder made a move, Leo and Raph jumped him and used all of their strength to restrain him and keep him from trying to crush Mikey's heart fragment into pieces.

"Donnie, now!" Leo shouted out his signal to his purple-banded brother whilst he was holding down the Cyber Shredder's arm and upper body.

Donnie, who had laid Mikey down on the ground a moment before his older brothers charged towards the Cyber Shredder, nodded and ran towards Mikey's heart fragment before he used his bo staff to hit the Cyber Shredder's hand in order to release it and grab it himself.

"No! How dare you…!" The Cyber Shredder yelled out angrily after part of his plan was foiled before he broke free from Leo and Raph's grasps.

"Donnie, save Mikey! We'll keep the Shredder busy!" Leo shouted out to Donnie as he and Raph prepared themselves to fight against their enemy.

Donnie didn't need to be told twice; he ran over to Mikey, who was struggling to breathe even more due to low levels of oxygen from his mask, and stored his heart fragment into the top of the Data Tube bit-by-bit before he placed and attached the bottom of the device on top of Mikey's chest where the digital gash was. He then typed on the mini keyboard to set up the transfer process.

"Hang in there, Mikey…You're going to be ok real soon…" Donnie reassured Mikey whilst he held his baby brother's hand before he immediately pressed the button to start the transfer.

Mikey suddenly felt a sensation that was like a rush of heat flowing through his chest as his heart fragment was slowly but surely reuniting with his heart, causing him to groan and move his head back and forth in discomfort. Donnie placed his other hand on top of Mikey's head to keep him from moving any more than he already was.

"Shhh…it's ok, Mikey, stay still…I know it's not a comfortable process, but trust me; it will all be worth it in the end…" Donnie said softly as he squeezed his brother's hand in comfort before he saw Mikey look at him with pained eyes and then nod at him weakly, causing the purple-banded turtle to smile warmly at him.

Meanwhile, Leo and Raph were struggling to prevent the Cyber Shredder from getting closer to Mikey and Donnie as they tried to both defend themselves and land a hit on the Cyber Shredder, because his abilities to become transparent and regrow his limbs were making it difficult for them to bring him down.

"Fools…in this world, I am invisible!" The Cyber Shredder said in an overconfident and cocky way.

"You're wrong, Shredder; no-one is invisible!" Leo countered back loudly before he used his katanas to strike the Shredder on his side whilst he was just standing there after being taken aback by Leo's comment. The Cyber Shredder yelled in pain and held his side for a moment before he looked up to see Raph in front of him and punched him in the face, sending him flying a few metres away from the turtles.

"Shell, yeah!" Raph shouted out after the Cyber Shredder landed on the ground and then gave Leo a high-three. However, their victory was short-lived because the Cyber Shredder suddenly got back up and the wound on his side quickly healed itself not long afterwards.

"Pathetic…it will take more than that to destroy me!" The Cyber Shredder said from where he was standing before he slowly started to walk towards the turtles.

"Are ya being serious!?" Raph shouted in frustration before he felt Leo's hand on his shoulder.

"Calm down and focus, Raph, getting worked up about this won't get us anywhere…we have to bide time for Donnie by keeping him away from Mikey," Leo said calmly to his hot-headed brother who nodded before they both turned their heads towards the Cyber Shredder.

Before they could even move or blink, Leo and Raph were grabbed by the Cyber Shredder's extended arms and were brought face-to-face (literally) with the Cyber Shredder, before he bashed the turtles' heads against one another to knock them out and dropped them to the floor.

"Guys, no! Get up!" Donnie shouted out in horror after he witnessed his two older brothers being knocked out by the Cyber Shredder, who was slowly starting to walk towards him and Mikey. With no other options left, Donnie stood up from his position next to Mikey, who was still too weak to fight on his own, and he grabbed his bo staff as he stood in a defensive pose in front of his baby brother.

"Ha ha ha ha…Do you really think that you can challenge me on your own, little turtle?" The Cyber Shredder said mockingly at Donnie as he stopped and stood just metres away from the purple-banded brother.

"I'm _not _alone, because my brothers are still here with me!" Donnie countered back bravely despite the feeling of doubt in his mind that he might get taken out by the time his older brothers wake up fully. However, what he didn't know was that the Data Tube had just finished downloading the heart fragment back into Mikey's chest and Mikey was slowly starting to come around.

"Face it, turtle; you cannot defeat me!" The Cyber Shredder said firmly before he charged forward.

Donnie charged forward as well and he managed to block the Cyber Shredder's first strike, but he was then knocked to the ground by the Cyber Shredder's extra arms which appeared out of nowhere. Donnie was about to get back up, but the Cyber Shredder pinned him down under his foot, making him struggle to get free.

"Now, once I am done with you, I will put an end to your weak little brother next!" The Cyber Shredder said as he raised his bladed hand in the air and was prepared to strike Donnie down.

Suddenly, a wave of orange-coloured energy beamed out of nowhere and hit the Cyber Shredder hard, causing him to fall backwards in pain and release Donnie in the process. When Donnie lifted his upper body up and turned his head around to look behind him from where he was laying, his eyes widened in surprise and disbelief at what he saw and suddenly realised; it wasn't his older brothers who attacked the Cyber Shredder…

It was Mikey!


	9. Chapter 9-Strength from the Heart

Chapter 9-Strength from the Heart

Donnie continued to look on in disbelief when he saw what was in front of him; his baby brother Mikey was standing up with a pair of spinning nun-chucks in one hand and holding the now deactivated Data Tube in his other hand. He was also wearing a sunny smile on his face, meaning that he was now doing ok since his heart was whole again and the gash on his chest was now fully healed.

"Mikey!" Donnie said happily to his brother who slowly walked over to him due to feeling a little tired still from the transfer procedure earlier and helped him up before Donnie asked him a question. "Are you ok? Any pain in your chest?"

"I'm fine, Donnie…I'm back and better than ever," Mikey answered his brother as he placed a hand on his shoulder to reassure him that he's alright and handed him the device, causing Donnie to breathe a sigh of relief and accept the device back before he and Mikey turned their attention to the Cyber Shredder, who stood up from where he landed from the blast.

"What!? Impossible!" He shouted when he saw Mikey alive and standing not far from him.

The Cyber Shredder's yelling soon caused Leo and Raph to wake up and slowly get up from where they were laying, and they both looked on with wide eyes in surprise when they not only saw Mikey standing next to Donnie, but they also noticed that the Cyber Shredder was walking slowly and angrily towards them.

"How are you still alive and breathing!? You are the weakest and most useless one out of you four turtles…even your own master and brothers said so many times before…I've seen and heard them myself through your heart's memories!" The Cyber Shredder shouted out angrily as he prepared his bladed gauntlets for another fight.

Leo, Raph, and Donnie all gasped in shock after hearing what the Cyber Shredder just shouted out, and they were about to retort against it before Mikey stepped forward with a serious look on his face.

"You're wrong, Shred Head! Yeah, my father and brothers do scold me when I mess something up or do something stupid, but they still love and care about me because I know that deep down they will always need me, no matter what I do!" He shouted back with a hand over his heart before he unleashed another wave of energy from his nun-chucks at the Cyber Shredder.

The Cyber Shredder only blocked half of the attack's power and the rest sent him back a few metres before Leo decided to walk forward and speak up next.

"That's right! We are all different in terms of strengths and abilities, but they help to make a great team. Our team cannot function without a courageous leader…"

"A strong protector…" Raph said as he walked forwards and joined in with Leo.

"A smart brain…" Donnie then said as he walked to join his baby brother.

"And a heart of light!" Mikey finished off as he walked towards the Cyber Shredder, who was bewildered but annoyed by the turtles' words.

"Enough! I will rip you all to shreds and you, Michelangelo, will be the one to blame for your brothers' downfall!" The Cyber Shredder said before he extended his bladed arms and aimed for the turtles.

Luckily, the turtles saw the attack coming and fought back against it, causing the Cyber Shredder's arms to dissolve and regrow.

"No, Shredder, this time it will be _your _downfall!" Leo said before he and his brothers charged forward, each with weapons in hand.

Despite only just having his heart put back together in one piece, Mikey was the first to reach and attack the Cyber Shredder with his spinning nun-chucks due to his unique agility levels. The Cyber Shredder blocked Mikey's first strike but wasn't able to do the same with his second, which landed on his face.

However, the Cyber Shredder quickly shrugged it off and countered back with one of his bladed gauntlets, but Mikey was quicker and managed to block his attack. The Cyber Shredder grew more frustrated and began to press further down onto Mikey's nun-chuck, causing Mikey to struggle against his enemy's increased strength despite giving his all to prevent the blades from hitting his face.

Noticing their brother's struggle, Leo and his younger brothers ran to his aid and managed to push the Cyber Shredder away from him with all their might, before they let Mikey punch him in the face a few times whilst they pinned him down.

Eventually, Mikey stopped punching the Cyber Shredder and slowly stood back up panting with a hand over his chest which concerned his brothers, especially Donnie who spoke to him.

"Mikey, are you-"

"I-I'm fine, bro…" Mikey said to cut off his purple-banded brother as he tried to catch his breath.

"Well, ya sure gave Shred Head a beatin' dat he'll never forget…Good job, bro," Raph complimented his baby brother proudly as he wrapped an arm around his shoulders before he looked at the Cyber Shredder's unconscious body.

"Yeah, and we're glad you're ok and still with us, Mikey…When your condition got worse, I thought…" Leo said with a warm smile before he frowned and looked away as he said the last sentence. He was then engulfed in a hug by Mikey who spoke.

"Thanks, Leo…Don't worry, I'm alright now…thanks to all of you…" Leo turned his head to look at his hugging baby brother with wide eyes after he heard what Mikey just said before his warm smile returned and accepted the hug greatly, with Donnie and Raph joining them and turning it into a big group hug.

A moment later, the brothers released themselves from the hug and Donnie spoke.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I think it's time that we should head back home to the lair…now that our heart of the family is whole again…"

His brothers, especially Mikey, smiled and nodded in agreement which signaled the go-ahead to Donnie to activate a portal that would take them back to the lair, and the brothers walked through it, leaving the unconscious Cyber Shredder behind.

The turtle brothers safely returned to the lair through the portal with a sigh of relief, knowing that the ordeal was now over. However, Mikey suddenly collapsed onto his knees and began to breathe heavily as soon as he took a few steps forward from the portal.

"Mikey!" Raph shouted after he saw him collapse first and went over to him straight away to hold him steady before he hissed slightly at Mikey's touch because his skin was warmer than normal.

"What's wrong!?" Leo said worryingly before he watched Donnie kneel down to Mikey's and checked him over with a concerned look on his face.

"He's got a high fever and he's really exhausted…" He answered his blue-banded brother's question in his 'Doctor Don' voice after he placed a hand on Mikey's forehead.

"What!? How's dat possible? He was doin' alright during da fight…" Raph said in shock and disbelief.

"I think it's an after-effect from the transfer process of his heart fragment, and the reason why he didn't collapse straight away as soon as he stood up might be that his adrenaline level was high when he faced the Shredder and fought him in order to protect us…" Donnie explained in the same tone.

"Can you give him a check-over to see if there's nothing more serious going on, Donnie?" Leo asked his purple-banded brother as he looked at Mikey with a concerned look on his face.

"Yes…Let's get him to the infirmary, I need to do another ultrasound to check his heart's condition, anyway. Raph, can you carry him there for me?" Donnie answered.

"Yeah, I got him…" Raph replied sadly before he carefully lifted Mikey in his arms bridal-style and followed Donnie as he and Leo headed towards the infirmary.


	10. Chapter 10-Road to Recovery

Chapter 10-Road to Recovery

Mikey was gently placed onto the infirmary bed by Raph who then held his baby brother's hand as he sat on a chair next to the bed to support him, with Leo doing the same with his other hand but standing up after he went to retrieve a bowl of cool water and a cloth to help bring down Mikey's fever later.

Donnie turned on his ultrasound scanner, grabbed the scanning rod and placed it on top of Mikey's chest to begin the procedure. Once Mikey's heart was viewed on the screen, Donnie assessed it whilst slowly moving the rod to see more of the organ's structure.

"Well, Donnie? How's his heart doin'?" Raph asked anxiously after a moment of silence.

Donnie smiled a bit just seconds after Raph spoke to him before he turned his head towards his red-banded brother to give him an answer.

"Doing fine now; the walls of his heart are no longer stiff or inflamed, it's just beating a little faster than normal due to the fever…"

Raph and Leo both breathed a sigh of relief and smiled greatly after hearing the good news before Leo asked Donnie something else.

"How long will it be until Mikey's condition is 100% better?"

"With the high fever and severe exhaustion combined, I would estimate that Mikey will fully recover after around a week of bed rest, but it depends on how long his body and spirit will heal…" Donnie answered whilst he turned off and stored away his ultrasound scanner.

"Ngh…"

The three older brothers suddenly heard a quiet grunt coming from their baby brother and when they turned to look at his face they noticed that Mikey's eyelids were slowly starting to open, meaning that he was starting to wake up.

"Mikey…?" Raph called out softly towards his baby brother as he gently squeezed his hand whilst Leo and Donnie leaned in slightly closer to watch their baby brother wake up. After a minute, Mikey's eyes were fully open and he looked in front of him to see his three older brothers looking at him with relieved smiles on their faces.

"H-Hey…" Mikey said tiredly with a small smile on his face.

"Mikey!" His older brothers said quietly since they might startle their brother before they breathed a sigh of relief after seeing their brother awake again.

"How do you feel, little brother?" Leo asked softly.

Mikey blinked slowly and turned to his Blue-banded brother before he spoke tiredly.

"T-Tired…hot and achy…"

"That's because you have a high fever, which is an after-effect of your heart fragment being transferred back into your chest…" Donnie explained as he placed a hand on Mikey's forehead.

"W-What happened earlier…?" Mikey asked.

"You don't remember? You-" Leo said in concern and was about to answer him before Raph cut him off and told him instead.

"Ya confronted da Shredder and then beat him up til he was out cold! I have ta say, bro, I didn't know ya had it in ya…"

"Whoa…N-Neither did I…" Mikey said with wide eyes after he was left stunned from what Raph told him before he shivered at the cold touch from the damp cloth that Donnie was gently dabbing onto Mikey's forehead. "C-Cold…"

"Sorry, Mikey, but it has to be done to help lower your fever's temperature," Donnie said with a sad smile before he watched Mikey nod in understanding and then continued to dab the cloth onto Mikey's forehead.

"Well, I think what you did earlier was really brave of you, Mikey; you just got your heart fragment back and you battled the Shredder with us as soon as the Data Tube completed its job. I'm really proud of you, little brother…" Leo said proudly to his baby brother as he gently squeezed his hand.

Mikey just smiled warmly at his blue-banded brother before he suddenly let out a yawn and his eyes started to droop.

"Looks like today's events are starting to catch up to you, Mikey…" Leo said after he noticed how tired his baby brother looked.

"You're right, Leo. Why don't we move you to your room to rest and recover instead of the infirmary? You will be much more comfortable there and we will only be next door to you if you ever need us for anything…" Donnie said to his immediate little brother who beamed at him sleepily but happily when he heard his purple-banded brother's proposal.

"I definitely agree ta dat, bro. I'll carry him there…" Raph said in agreement with a smirk before he stood up and carefully lifted his baby brother up from the bed and walked out of the infirmary with Leo and headed towards Mikey's room, whilst Donnie stayed behind to grab something before he left the infirmary as well.

When they entered Mikey's room, they walked towards the bed whilst carefully avoiding the mess of action figures and rubbish on the floor and Raph gently laid a now sleepy Mikey down onto the bed and Leo covered him up with the blanket. Donnie then appeared a moment later and he approached Mikey's bed whilst carrying a small oxygen tank and mask in one hand and a water bottle in the other.

"What's with da tank, Donnie?" Raph asked with confusion showing on his face.

"I'm going to put Mikey on oxygen for a bit to give his body a helping hand in his recovery," Donnie answered as he held up the water bottle and looked at Mikey before he continued speaking. "Mikey, I've brought you some water since your fever can cause dehydration judging by the amount of sweat you're producing…"

Mikey looked at his purple-banded brother sleepily before he nodded in understanding since he was starting to feel really thirsty, and he opened his mouth as Donnie sat closer to slowly pour the water into Mikey's mouth.

"There you go, bro…take small, slow sips, ok?" Donnie said softly as he watched Mikey drink the water under his instructions. Mikey then sighed in relief after he finished drinking and relaxed his head onto his pillow before Donnie placed the oxygen mask onto his face and turned on the oxygen tank, which was placed next to Mikey's bed, and gently placed the damp cloth on his baby brother's forehead to help cool down his fever a bit.

"Alright, little brother, you can rest easy now…" Donnie said softly as he placed a comforting hand on Mikey's shoulder before he watched Mikey nod and then slowly close his eyes to fall into a peaceful sleep.

"So, is it safe to say that he's out of the danger zone now, Donnie?" Asked Leo curiously.

"Yes, Leo; we just need to make sure that he's comfortable and that his temperature is maintained to ensure that he doesn't overheat or get too dehydrated," Donnie answered with a smile before he turned back to look at his sleeping baby brother and then spoke again. "I think we should leave him to sleep for a bit since the damp cloth is helping to keep his fever steady for now. We'll come back and check on him in an hour or two…"

"Alright," Leo and Raph said in unison before they followed Donnie out of Mikey's room.

Raph, however, stopped at the doorway and turned his body halfway to look at Mikey once more with regret and sadness since it was his and his brothers' fault that Mikey was in the condition he's in now.

"Mikey, I promise ya dat we'll make it up ta ya fa what we did…" He said quietly before he turned back around and left the doorway with the door slightly open in case Mikey tried to call out for his brothers.


	11. Epilogue-A Heart's Resolve

Epilogue-A Heart's Resolve

7 days later…

It was morning in the turtles' lair, and Donnie was walking towards his little brother's room carrying a tray that had two empty bowls, a box of cereal, a carton of milk, a cup of coffee and a glass of orange juice on top of it, meaning that it was breakfast time. Close behind him were his two older brothers, who also wanted to go and see their baby brother, and they were carrying their own breakfasts with them.

"This isn't a picnic, guys, it's just breakfast…" Donnie said sarcastically when he noticed that his brothers had brought their breakfasts with them.

"Says da turtle who is carryin' a breakfast tray with _two _bowls and different drinks…" Raph countered back with a smirk and a mocking glare.

"Good point…" Donnie said sheepishly.

"Come on, you two; we've all thought of the same thing about joining Mikey for breakfast today. After all; he's been on bed-rest and has eaten breakfast on his own for the past week, so he could do with some company today," Leo pointed out to his younger brothers in a firm but soft tone.

"Yeah, ya right…" Raph said as he remembered the memories of this past week like they were yesterday.

Since their successful mission to save Mikey was completed and Mikey was put on bed-rest to recover from a high fever and exhaustion, the older turtle brothers only saw him when they needed to check on his health and progress on his recovery. After a couple of days went by, Mikey no longer needed the oxygen tank and his fever slightly dropped in temperature which made it easier for him to eat light liquid meals without the risk of throwing it back up. Three days after that, Donnie witnessed Mikey sitting himself up without any assistance when he went over to check on him, making him smile towards his baby brother and telling him and the others, who had come in to check on them both, that Mikey was one step closer to becoming 100% well again.

"Well, I know that he'll definitely feel happier once he finds out that we'll be eating breakfast together this time. Come on, we can't keep him waiting any longer!" Donnie said with a hint of excitement in his voice before he and his older brothers carried on walking towards his brother's room.

When they approached the door and opened it, Donnie and his brothers smiled when they saw what was in front of them; Mikey was awake and sitting up in his bed, reading his new comic book which he was finally able to do since he didn't get the chance to do so over a week ago after the incident happened. He then looked up from his comic after he sensed a presence enter his room and when he saw his brothers walking towards his bed, he smiled.

"Heya, bros!" Mikey said happily.

"Morning, Mikey…Got you some breakfast!" Donnie replied first with a warm smile as he walked over to the bedside table and put the tray down to prepare his and Mikey's breakfast.

"Thanks, Donnie, I was starting to feel hungry…" Mikey said as he closed his comic and put it to one side to prevent it from getting ruined during breakfast.

"Good morning, Mikey…How are you feeling?" Leo then said as he and Raph sat on the chairs next to Mikey's bed.

"I'm feeling a lot better; I don't feel as hot and achy as I was before now…" Mikey answered with a smile before he felt Donnie's hand being placed onto his forehead.

"Hmm, he's right…His fever is almost gone! Hopefully, by tonight or tomorrow, it should break altogether," Donnie confirmed his diagnosis with relief in his voice, causing his older brothers to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Well, thank shell fa dat! Now we can eat our breakfast together without anythin' ta worry about!" Raph cheered with a smirk before he started eating his breakfast.

"Really? You're going to eat your breakfast in here with me!?" Mikey questioned as he looked at his brothers with a surprised look when he heard Raph's last sentence.

"Of course we are, little brother…We've hardly spent any time together during your recovery since you were mostly asleep every day for the past week, so we thought that we should make it up to you by having breakfast together today…" Donne answered with a warm smile before he handed Mikey his bowl of cereal, and then sat on a chair to start eating his own.

"I-I…Thanks, guys…!" Mikey said gratefully with a loss for words before he made a start on eating his cereal.

"Your welcome, Mikey…" Leo replied before he too started to eat his own breakfast.

15 minutes later…

The turtles finished eating their breakfasts and placed all their cutlery, bowls and cups onto the tray to be taken back to the kitchen later. First, though, the older turtle brothers decided that they would take this chance with their time together with Mikey to talk to him about their actions on that fateful night.

"Hey, Mikey…About what happened that night several days ago, we're-" Leo began to talk but was suddenly cut off by Mikey who looked as if he knew what Leo was about to say despite the sadness in his eyes.

"Leo, wait…If anyone's going to apologise about what happened that night, it's going to be me…cos if I hadn't have eavesdropped on you guys and gone into Cyberspace alone, I wouldn't have gotten myself badly injured and almost killed by the Shredder…I'll admit that I was scared and nervous when I first went into Cyberspace alone, but when I thought about dad and how much he needed me, I knew that I had to put those feelings aside and carry on with what I needed to do…because I just couldn't face the fact of letting him or you guys down again like I did many times before…Then again, you all had every right to say what you said about me being hardly there for any of you over the years so it's kinda what I deserved as punishment for being so useless…so, for that, I'm really sorry…"

By the time he finished his sentence, Mikey began to get tearful and tried but failed to stop his tears from falling, whilst his brothers looked on in shock with wide eyes after what they just heard from their baby brother.

"Oh, Mikey…" Leo spoke up first after he snapped himself out of his shock before he gently held one of his baby brother's hands to comfort him as he continued speaking. "Nobody, including you, deserves to be punished in such a horrible way…and _we _were the ones in the wrong because you're not useless and you have helped us out more than once before over the years…"

"B-But who else is there to blame for our past failures besides me? M-Master Splinter wouldn't be scattered in Cyberspace if I hadn't have caused us to be transported to a world with more than one Shredder in it…I-It just proved that as soon as I try to help everyone, I just make things worse!" Mikey countered back in denial.

"Dat's not true, bro! It was dat cyber freak Viral who caused all dis, not you…" Raph said firmly as he placed a hand on Mikey's shoulder.

"That's right; I've also realised that it wasn't my fault either for what happened to father, so don't be so hard on yourself, Mikey…" Donnie said in agreement as he gently wiped a tear from Mikey's face.

Mikey sniffled and looked at his brothers for a second before he looked down again with confusion now starting to build up in his mind, so he tried to speak up again.

"I-I…I don't understand…"

"What is it, Mikey?" Leo questioned as he stroked his baby brother's hand with his thumb as he sensed a nervous and sorrowful vibe coming from him.

"I-I'm…no longer part of the team anymore…so why are you all here with me when you could be saving dad or fighting bad guys up topside by now?" Mikey answered shakily with more tears falling from his eyes.

"Hey, who says dat ya not part of the - Oh, shell…dat…" Raph said before he remembered what he, Donnie and Leo agreed on during their talk about Mikey seven days ago.

"Mikey, you _are _still part of the team…We realised our mistake as soon as we found out that you overheard everything that we said back then…" Donnie said firmly but softly. However, Mikey just carried on talking as if he didn't hear what his brothers said.

"I-I'm also…not your best friend or Raph's brother anymore, but that's ok cos…I would have said the same thing if I was in your position…"

Donnie and Raph's eyes widened even more; they knew what Mikey meant since they remembered exactly what they said about their feelings towards Mikey's actions and role in the team. Then, they heard Mikey sniffle and they both looked at him as he covered his eyes when they started to produce more tears, meaning that deep down he was still feeling heartbroken from hearing his own older brothers say that they didn't want anything to do with him anymore.

Donnie got up from his chair and sat onto the edge of Mikey's bed before engulfing his baby brother into a tight but gentle hug.

"Shhh…Oh, Mikey, I'm so sorry…I was so desperate to get our father back home that I let my exhaustion and frustration get the better of me on how I really felt and, instead of taking a break as you suggested, I took all those emotions as well as the blame out and onto you…We'll always be best friends, little brother…" Donnie said softly as he slowly rocked his baby brother back and forth.

"Yeah, and I'm sorry too, bro…, Ya may be annoying and a pain in da shell at times, but we still love ya and can't live without ya…" Raph said in agreement as he softly rubbed his baby brother's head after Donnie stopped rocking him.

A moment later, Mikey was released slightly from the hug by Donnie as soon as he started to calm down with only the sounds of sniffles and hiccups that could be heard, and he looked up at Donnie and Raph with watery eyes before Leo stepped forward, knelt down to Mikey's level and held his hand again as he spoke.

"I, too, want to apologise to you, Mikey…I never should have left you alone with all those negative words embedded in your mind…Even though I understood and agreed on some of the points made by Raph and Donnie about your actions and role in this family, I allowed you to enter Cyberspace and face the enemy alone in order to prove us wrong…Please, forgive me…"

Mikey looked at Leo with wide eyes for a moment before he developed a small smile and nodded slightly before he spoke.

"I-It's alright, Leo; you're our leader and you were stuck in the middle of the discussion. I shouldn't have eavesdropped on you guys and gone into Cyberspace alone in the first place, so I should be one asking for forgiveness, not you…"

"It's still no excuse for me to allow this to happen to you, Mikey, and it was wrong of us to talk about you negatively behind your back, whether you eavesdropped on us or not...We made you feel like you're nothing to us and that led you to get hurt whilst trying to prove us wrong, so don't shoulder our blame on yourself, little brother…ok?" Leo countered back firmly but softly as he stroked Mikey's hand with his thumb.

"Ok…" Mikey said with a sigh before he continued speaking. "Erm…I-If it's ok with you guys, I want to promise something to you…"

"What?" "A promise?" "To us?" His brothers said at the same time with confused looks on their faces.

"Y-Yeah, I…" Mikey started before he paused and took a deep breath and resumed talking. "I promise you that…I will try my best to be there for you all when you need me the most, and I'll try to be less immature and more proper as a ninja during training and missions…I don't want to make any more stupid mistakes that could potentially put our lives at risk or cause our plans to go downhill…so I'm going to work harder to make sure that it won't happen again…!"

Leo, Raph and Donnie were left gobsmacked after hearing Mikey's promise to them; their own baby brother was preparing to sacrifice his fun-loving spirit and comical nature in order to benefit their needs as a team, which instantly caused the feelings of guilt and regret to build in their hearts and minds since it was their fault for making such a selfish wish just to suit themselves.

The three older brothers looked at each other before they turned to look at Mikey again, with Leo speaking first in a serious but soft tone.

"Mikey, do you really believe that making a promise like that to us will make things better for _all _of us?"

This caused Mikey to gasp quietly and look at his blue-banded brother with wide eyes before he looked down slightly in thought. "W-Well, I…erm…"

"Listen, little brother, I know you mean well when you told us your promise, but you can't make a promise that will only benefit me, Leo and Raph…It's just not how it works…" Donnie pointed out as he placed a hand on Mikey's shoulder and squeezed it gently.

"Yeah, it's like ya willing ta change who ya really are in order ta make us happy…dat ain't gonna happen, bro!" Raph said firmly but softly in agreement with his purple-banded brother.

Mikey looked up at his brothers in disbelief before he spoke. "B-But it's for the good of the team if I were more serious and mature like you guys, cos it'll help get Master Splinter back home faster…"

Leo shook his head slowly with a sad smile before he spoke. "Mikey, there's really nothing wrong with who you are now. It's natural to make mistakes because it's a part of learning how to improve yourself in life, and I'm sure that Master Splinter wouldn't want you to change into someone you're not just because you don't take things as seriously as we do. Besides, if you changed because of what we said days ago, we would lose the light of our family…"

"W-What…?" Mikey said with confusion showing on his face.

"Leo's right, Mikey; you're the ninja and brother who would try to make everyone laugh with your jokes and comical moves, as well as making them feel positive when things get tough. Also, you always make sure that we are all eating well by cooking amazing meals for us and spending time together as a family by dragging us away from our busy lifestyles to watch movies and play video games. If we lost your fun-loving and carefree spirit, Mikey, we would be moving around in the darkness and be driven insane due to the lack of fun in the lair. In fact, you said yourself back in Cyberspace that a light-filled heart is essential for making a good team…" Donnie pointed out in agreement with his blue-banded brother's words.

"R-Really?" Mikey questioned whilst in shock after what he just heard from his purple-banded brother.

"Yeah, so instead of you makin' us a promise like dat, we want you ta promise somethin' for _us_!" Raph said with Leo and Donnie nodding in support of Raph's words.

"O-Ok, what is it?" Mikey asked shakily as he wiped any stray tears from his face.

"Promise us that you will never ever go into Cyberspace to tackle a mission on your own without us again, and to come and talk to us whenever you're feeling down because we're your older brothers and we will always be there to listen to you, little brother…ok?" Leo said in a serious but caring tone.

Mikey looked down for a moment to allow what Leo had just said to fully process into his mind before he lifted his head back up to look at his brothers with a small smile.

"Yeah, I promise…" He said softly before he was engulfed in a brotherly hug by his older brothers.

"We love you, Mikey…" They said before they felt Mikey snuggle closer into the hug and said,

"I love you too, bros…Let's save dad together!"

"Yeah!" His brothers cheered as they broke away from the hug and gave Mikey a noogie on the head and a pat on the shoulders.

Now that he was on the mend and his older brothers showed a better appreciation for their baby brother, Mikey can now breathe easy knowing that, no matter what is being thrown at them, their team and family will always remain strong and will succeed in saving their father and sensei from Cyberspace a lot sooner than they think, now that their heart of light is whole again and shining brighter than ever.

The End.


End file.
